


Flipping the Script

by Kawa (fandomonymous), randumbdaze



Category: Disco Elysium (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Rewrite, Comic, First Meetings, Gen, alternate skills, an attempt at glimmers of backstory??, one panel of hanging, one panel of vomiting, same content warnings as DE
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 07:40:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24347389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomonymous/pseuds/Kawa, https://archiveofourown.org/users/randumbdaze/pseuds/randumbdaze
Summary: An alternate viewpoint for the beginning of an investigation.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 61
Collections: Disco Elysium Big Bang





	1. REVACHOL CITIZENS MILITIA FORM: INCIDENT ASSIGNMENT | CASE NUMBER: KK57-[______]-[_____]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A form.

**INCIDENT DESCRIPTION** :

Anonymous female calls central RCM line reporting a hanging in the back of the 'Whirling-in-Rags' at East Delta Commerce Center, Building B, in Martinaise. Caller says hanging happened evening of 4 March, '51, 5 days before call in, on fear of retribution from Débardeurs Union. Caller did not witness incident first hand. Caller refuses to give identifying information about herself, and refused cash reward for tip.

**VICTIM NAME** :

UNKNOWN

**VICTIM DESCRIPTION** :

Mondial male, age unknown

**PROTOCOL** :

As Martinaise is between jurisdictions, case is stereo-assigned to Precincts 41 and 57. Officers from each precinct are expected to collaborate on field autopsy and investigation.

**OFFICER 1** :

Ltn Kim Kitsuragi, Badge LTN-1GMR KITSURAGI, Precinct 57

**OFFICER 2** :

[_________], Badge [_______________], Precinct 41

(INSTRUCTIONS: Fill in information on colleague upon initial meeting and debrief. Meet in front of 'Whirling-in-Rags' as soon as possible.)

**ASSIGNMENT DATE** :

March 12, '51


	2. REVACHOL CITIZENS MILITIA FORM: INCIDENT ASSIGNMENT | CASE NUMBER: KK57-[______]-[_____]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **CONTROL** : No one fucks with *you*, sir. Nothing gets in your way. You have a case to solve and a self to prove.

**SENSORY (Hearing)** : The Kineema is not just a motor carriage - it is an animal to be tamed. A large cat, purring beneath you. Maybe someone else thinks it's an infernal racket, but to you it is sweetness, a grounding in the mechanical and real. Sometimes you put on music - a dozen radio stations at your fingertips, based on your mood and your energy levels - but you're just as likely to keep it off, pay attention to the electric and mechanical hum. You've chosen the latter this morning - a new case demands attention and focus, unimpeded. 

**PANACHE** : You are an ace pilot navigating the world behind these levers. Coolest motherfucker alive. 

**DEBATE** : You had a hell of a time getting to this point, a wild roundabout of operator telephone at dawn, threatening various middle managers of the East Motor Tract legal action against the RCM, obstruction of justice charges if they didn't lower the drawbridge between the GRIH and Martinaise. 

**CONTROL** : No one fucks with *you*, sir. Nothing gets in your way. You have a case to solve and a self to prove. 

**COUPRIS KINEEMA** : You pull into the plaza in front of the Whirling and park. You pat the levers briefly, lovingly, before removing your keys from the ignition and hopping out.

 **SENSORY (Sight)** : Many things here are broken - a nearby fence, a window on the second floor of the Whirling-in-Rags. Dents in the post box. Old bullet holes on the concrete and brick. Graffiti here and there. 

**FRATERNITÉ** : Martinaise is an orphan. Even amongst the various traumatized children of Revachol, it stands out - reaching out to the sea, at a remove from the rest. 

**CAMARADERIE** : When he handed you the incident assignment form, Captain Rostov told you he wanted nothing to do with this - Martinaise was too chaotic, especially with current tensions between Wild Pines and the Débardeurs Union. He wasn't going to give you any help, assign anyone else to the case - yet his pride in the 57th was too much to let the case go entirely to the 41st. A fucking custody squabble no one wants, a pissing contest where pride matters more than justice.

 **CONTROL** : Yes, there is pride on the line, a personal one. You want to prove you can take on things others think is impossible. You want to be seen as cool - and you want to be seen as *brilliant*. You want the whole RCM - no, the whole Moralintern - no the whole of Revachol - to stop underestimating your capabilities.

 **FRATERNITÉ** : Yes, there is pride on the line, a larger one. You want to believe in your love of the city, that your identity in and work for Revachol is enough. You want a just Revachol, a Revachol that moves past its basest impulses, beyond its smaller squabbles. You want to see the miraculous beauty you know vibrates underneath its ragged exterior.

 **YOU** : You're a member of the RCM and a Vacholiere. You do what you must, even as the brotherhood and the city debases you. 

You enter the Whirling.

 **SENSORY (SIGHT)** : Long cafeteria benches, one person slumped over a puddle of booze. A broken pinball machine. An older lady in a wheelchair. A man in a purple shirt and a gray vest fussing over a broken taxidermied skua. A small stage with a karaoke stand. 

**ANALYTICS** : A cozy, neighborhood place. Where blue collar workers come for a simple meal and drinks after a shift. Not much of a home, but undoubtedly one - or rather, a precious third space, a place to be comfortable that is neither home nor work. 

**SENSORY (HEARING)** : A jaunty tune on the speakers, temps modéré. The snoring of the one in the booze puddle. And suddenly, the creaking of the stairs -


	3. A meeting.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **FRATERNITÉ** : Sometimes, Revachol has no choice in who protects her.
> 
> Art by Aster! Follow er on [Instagram](https://instagram.com/pieartsy) and check out [er website!](https://asterfialla.com/art)

Click through for full versions!


	4. A meeting (transcript)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Transcript of the comic!

[Harry stumbling down the stairs, out of focus. Different thoughts focus on different parts of him, represented by round zoomed-in segments and handwritten notes:]

**MEMORY** : [Glassy eyes and ruddy nose.] What a mess. Probably insane - not the worst in the RCM, but it's been a while since one's been so *obviously* and *thoroughly* undone. Is this really what the 41st sends out for this fucking pissing contest?  
**LIBIDO** : [A disco shirt buttoned low enough for chest hair to be peeking out.] You know, in that terrifying way that only the worst of men can be, he's kinda hot. A disaster to untangle. A challenge.  
**CAMARADERIE** : [RCM patch on the sleeve.] ...fuck, is this that Human Can Opener? No way. That can't be real. That's just a bunch of macho assholes telling tall tales about gritty-ass Jamrock.  
**CONTROL** : [Harry is only wearing one shoe.] So incredibly lost and miserable he'll *have* to listen to you, *sir*. You can take the lead on this investigation. Prove your worth in front of the supposed hotshot from the 41st. 

**CAMARADERIE** : [A switch to Kim himself - focused on the patch on the front of his jacket, near the heart.] Look, Lieutenant, there's a job to do. If Revachol asks, you will take a bullet for him. You *must* believe - no matter what apperances say - that he would do the same for you.

**GHOSTLINE** : [Horrific necktie.] Crazed swirls of color and shape, forming nothingness but also the world. 

* * *

**GHOSTLINE** : [The tie is swirling around Harry, in handshake range.] Each dye was made of pigments that came from different isolas. And there are so many, and they are shaped so fluidly as if to be in motion. The inside of his mind works in the same way.  
This man is important. He is difficult but not irredeemable.  
Something miraculous may happen with him by your side.

**KIM** : [Kim offers his hand.] Kim Kitsuragi, Precinct 57. And you are…?

**HARRY** : [Watery sunset colors behind him, as if looking through a drink glass - "Tequila Sunset" as aesthetic. All of Harry's speech bubbles are ill-formed and wavy, in contrast to Kim's perfectly round ones.] IT IS NOT YET TIME.  
**CONTROL** : Oh, this one should be…"fun". Pull yourself together, because he sure isn't.

[Kim and Harry, conversing. Kim gesturing towards Garte way in the back.]  
**KIM** : Okay then, I guess there was a scheduling error. Have you had time to talk to the manager here?  
**HARRY** : There must be some kind of misunderstanding. You're taking me for someone else.  
/ **ANALYTICS** : No, it's impossible for you to be wrong here. You were told the 41st came in ahead of you, he's wearing the patches.

* * *

[Images of said initial interviewers. Left: Joyce, the racist lorry driver, the Scab Leader, Cindy. Right: Plaisance, Mañana, Lena, Evrart, Liz, the Smoker. Down the center, the following:]  
**KIM** : No, there was no misunderstanding. Have you mapped out the initial interviews?  
**HARRY** : What interviews?  
**CAMARADERIE** : Sadly this is not the *least* competent cop we've met.  
**KIM** : At the 57th, we usually prepare a list of initial persons of interest and skim the surface. Get to know the players. You don't do that?  
**HARRY** : I haven't.  
**CAMARADERIE** : You're curious as to how the 41st *really* works, but you're not going to learn just yet.

[Image of the hanged man in the tree, Cuno messing with it, and Cunoesse.]  
**KIM** : And have you removed the dead body from the tree?  
**HARRY** : No.  
**KIM** : So the body is still in the tree…  
**CONTROL** : This is fucking bullshit. Why the fuck -  
**KIM** : where it has been hanging …  
**CAMARADERIE** : The RCM is a mess, but this is actually very strange, even by those standards. How -  
**KIM** : … for seven days straight.

**FRATERNITÉ** : Sometimes, Revachol has no choice in who protects her.  
[Harry's head hanging, just like the hanged man.]  
**Harry** : What if I told you I'm not really a police officer?

* * *

**CAMARADERIE** : Oh, poor soul. So many of us wish we could escape.  
**MEMORY** : [Swirls of moments feeding into Kim's skull - a wrench, a pen, drums.] You couldn't hack it as a mechanic. You didn't have the money for university. And of course, no one would pay you to be a musician, as intuitive as rhythm comes to you.

[Still conversing. Kim looks firm, readying himself to lead.]  
**KIM** : You have the insignia of the RCM on your jacket.  
**CAMARADERIE** : And there's something in your sad, sad soul that shows you've given your blood for this.  
**KIM** : You should have a badge as well, right?  
**HARRY** : ...My badge was not on me when I woke up.  
**CONTROL** : Oh for *fuck's sake*.

[Just Harry. Sad, lost, drunk.]  
**HARRY** : Actually, I don't remember anything.

* * *

[These next three panels are stark, terrible flashbacks.]

[Kim has a hand in his partner's hair, holding their head up.]  
**MEMORY** : I have seen my partner vomiting half a bottle of painkillers into my own bathtub.

[Spit flying, gum stuck on Kim's cheek. Kim stone faced.]  
**MEMORY** : I have had accusations of a wild seroseolite conspiracy literally spit in my face from a Sergeant assigned as one of my reports.

[Kim's ledger. Three rows of marks: Years, cases, kills. 20 years or so, a hundred cases. Six kills.]  
**MEMORY** : I know which marks on this ledger involve dead children - on all 3 rows.

[Harry and Kim from behind. Kim stands straight, arms behind his back, perfectly poised. Harry is slumped, messy, unsteady, with his hand on the door.]  
**MEMORY** : An amnesiac with a drinking problem ignoring a rotting corpse is the least this fucking city could throw at me.  
**CAMARADERIE** : Focus on the work. Work keeps you centered.  
**CONTROL** : Work keeps everything else from falling apart. Work will keep you from becoming like this.  
**HARRY** : Let's go.  
**KIM** : After you, officer.


	5. Appendix: Come, be this person

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skill descriptions as seen in these scenes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Other skills, stat distribution, and Thought Cabinet are left as an exercise to the reader.

### INTELLECT

MEMORY
    Know what you once saw and felt. Take advantage of nostalgia.  
_Too low_ : Forget important clues. Start obliterating your own memories -- ESPECIALLY the painful ones. Better to forget.  
_Too high_ : Remember EVERYTHING. Every insignificant oil spill in a parking lot, every word in Easy Leo's not-relevant-to-the-case-at-all rambling. Confuse important clues with irrelevancy. Also, remember the slights, the racial slurs, the physical injuries, etc. lain onto you with ALARMING clarity.
DEBATE 
    Understand persuasion and tone. The thrill of discourse.  
_Too low_ : Truth, research, experience - none of it will matter when you try to share it because when it comes to human communication, the form of communication matters as much as the function - you will be unheard, and hate it.  
_Too high_ : Caught up in the competitive high of defeated your discursive opponents, you will look for unnecessary disagreement, and worse still you will find yourself willing to slide further and further from truly representing what you believe - because what matters isn't being right in your heart, what matters is *winning*.
ANALYTICS
    Pull the pieces together. Reverse engineer the scene.  
_Too low_ : The flood of data will wash you away; you'll be surrounded in details and facts and evidence but they will be an unparsable jumble, devoid of connection and meaning.  
_Too high_ : You will instinctively break everything down into sharp and glittering pieces to examine at leisure one by one - but sometimes that means not seeing the forest for the trees, and not everything broken down will fit back together.

### PSYCHE

CAMARADERIE
    RCM protocol and culture. Earn respect from peers.  
_Too low_ : Social isolation. Walk in, do your job at the bare minimum, and walk out, not knowing or caring for a soul.  
_Too high_ : Become a workaholic. Gouge out all other aspects of your personality than a copotype. Become a well-oiled machine kept in the cabinet of the precinct. Give your entire being to the RCM and be the Finest of Everything, whatever that costs.
👑 CONTROL [signature skill]
    Earn respect from all. Play the stoic.  
_Too low_ : You don't have control over anyone. At all. To Revachol, you're just a small-bodied binoclard foreigner f*****t. And worse, your own self will betray you - driven by impulse, a disgrace to your name, the uniform, and the city.  
_Too high_ : Your entire life, you've had to fight for any amount of respect. It's time people listened to YOU. Enjoy dominating, manipulating, and controlling other people -- after all, you've got to survive here as much as anyone, and what else could possibly work? And you'll do it all without a single flinch, a single doubt - no matter what the rest of you has to say.
FRATERNITÉ
    Revachol or nowhere. Hometown pride and knowledge.  
_Too low_ : This city is a strange, loud, foreign land. Get lost on the way to the scene of the crime, know nothing of hyperlocal culture.  
_Too high_ : Pride has a danger to it. You'll be unable to leave - or empathize with anyone who doesn't know the ins and outs of this place you call home. 

### FYSIQUE

LIBIDO
    Seek pleasure of the flesh and closeness of the heart.  
_Too low_ : You'll be oblivious to potential pleasure. Your pants - and your heart - will be closed off to anyone. You'll be too innocent - or too repressed - to know the truth of desire humming around you.  
_Too high_ : You'll constantly chase that particular form of validation. There's a chance you'll be a bit too easy, too eager. You'll make yourself vulnerable in exchange for any pleasure.

### MOTORICS

SENSORY
    Find detail that matters. Drill in on what you need.  
_Too low_ : See and hear nothing. Pay no attention to the world.  
_Too high_ : Become detail obsessed to the point of distraction. Get overwhelmed by every possible microscopic sensation - the smell of bread baking a block away, the sound of a piece of tare being kicked down the street.
PANACHE
    Recognize and execute stylish flourishes. Ace's Low.  
_Too low_ : Crash-land every time you attempt something cool. Have zero perception of aesthetic and style.  
_Too high_ : Become obsessed with embodying the "wow factor" of aereobatic maneuvers. Actively perform trickshots and flourishes where a simple movement would have been enough. Spend your entire paycheck on a single fancy boot.
GHOSTLINE
    At the edges of your fingertips, just past your vision, a world beyond what you perceive.  
_Too low_ : The only things in the world are what's in front of you - no more, no less.  
_Too high_ : The world is dizzying, infinite complexity at every level. It's overwhelming and terrifying, and there is no way to cope because no one else understands at the level you do. 


End file.
